Automobile valve protection plate



Jan. 5, 1954 H. F. MCKENNA 2,664,869

AUTOMOBILE VALVE PROTECTION PLATE Filed May s, 1953 FIG. I.

FIG. 3.

FIG. 4.

INVENTOR HERMAN E MC KENNA W m ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 5, 1954 UNITED OFFICE 7 AUTOMOBILE vALvn PROTECTION PLATE Herman F. McKenna, Williamstowii, W. Va, Application May 8, 1953, Serial No. 353,712

dclai ns. (01. 123-121 The present invention relates broadly to internal combustion engines and the like, having valves operating above the headsofcylinders the e gi e bl c More spe ifica ly the pres nt invention el es to in ern eombus io n s i w c e valve oper te in the h ads. of the e ines and directly above pistons inserted in bores in the 57 1 516 0 31 I t ha been fo nd i etuelmee iee he in 1. am ns anc s the valve em er he v l themse ve wi l b eak under h preeseree in the y ind rs er due t d f t ve a t crystallization of'theparts in question. At'the same time itwill be apparent that valve springs are subject to breakage in use,either because of misuse or defective parts. When this occurs there is a good possibility of a valve: stem breaking. When any of these occurrences'take place during operation of an engine, such a broken valve stem or valve'head will fall into a cylinder bore and thereby cause scoring or damaging of the engine. When valve stems break it is ex tremely costly to repair an internal combustion engine, especially powerful and heavy duty types of commercial engines.

It is a specific object of the present invention to provide a protection plate or ring for use in internal combustion engines which will prevent a. valve head and valve stem from falling into a cylinder of the engine when a break occurs in the valve head or valve stem.

A further object of the present invention is to provide such a protection plate which can be adapted for use with either L-head motors or V-type motors.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments of the invention taken together with theaccompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a sectional fragmentary view of an engine, taken through a cylinder bore, showing the valves and cylinder as also the protection plate of the present invention in operative position;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the protection plate of the present invention adapted for use with an L-head engine;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view of a protection plate of the present invention adapted for use with V-type engines; and

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of a further embodiment of the invention wherein the protection plate is adapted for use in engines having pistons rising above the cylinder block.

. n the rawin s apo tion or an engine block ...shew at Ill. a d a e tion f a cylinder head u er sed. thereo is shown at. H he sual coo n water pas a es e; generally esi ated at '2: A evlind rbere ieehown. t l 3. h vinse eieten ei e ue t e the e n- .Fenn n t e yl nder head a he. n: t ke an hau t cut ts er the com ustion. and e ha s gases, The in ake is shown a l and h xh ue et The n ake valvev is ewn at. 1. nd he ha st al hown. a l8. 'rheee valves are slidably mounted in thecylinder head i I, by means notshown, and hav the usual valve seats generally indicated at l3.

in operation thepiston ll and thevalves I1 and I8, asis. well known,,are reciprocated at mendou sp ed e e de eve th S d o the engine. When this occurs the valve stems and valve heads many times are prone to break due to faultyequipment, improper maintenance, or hard usage. 'Ifa valve stem or a valve head b ks in the e e. h wn n i he valve em d/ r valve e d i drop and e l into the cylinder bore l3 The cylinder bore, l3 and? the piston l4 are thereby subjected to severe damage resulting in high cost of repairs; In addition to the cost of repair incurred, the loss of use of the equipment is many times disastrous or provides undesirable and unnecessary hardships while the engine is being repaired.

In order to overcome and prevent this damage to the engine, I have devised a protection plate, such as shown in detail in Figs. 2, 3 and 4. This protection plate is formed preferably from a stainless steel plate although any suitable metals can be used. The protection plate designated as 20 in Fig. 1 is fitted into a groove 2| formed in the undersurface of the cylinder head I I where it meets with the surface of cylinder block III. The groove could also be made in the block. The diameter of the groove 2| and of the protection plate 20 are greater than that of the cylinder bore as seen from the drawing and are of matching sizes with regard to one another.

When such a protection plate is inserted in position as shown, any breakage of the valve, including the valve stem and valve head, does not result in a dropping 01 the broken parts into the cylinder bore l3.

In Fig. 2 a protection plate designed for use with L-head engines is shown. This consists of a ring 22 having cross bars 23 arranged in 9. lattice-work formation. Centrally located at regards the protection plate is a broad bar 24. The width of this bar is designed to catch a 3 valve head in case the valve head has broken off. This bar 24 is located directly beneath the valve stem. The valve stem in an L-head engine will be retained in the guide. In actual practice it has been found that a inch width is sufllcient to serve its purpose.

A protection plate would be useless if only a valve head would be held thereby in cases where the valve stem also drops. In accordance with the present invention not only a valve head but also the valve stem is prevented from dropping into the cylinder bore in V-type engines.

In Fig. 3 a similar protection plate is shown designed for use with a V-type engine. again consists of a ring 22 and cross bars 23 forming a latticework. The wider bar 24' how ever, is not centrally located in this construction but is spaced to one side commensurate with the positioning of valves in this type of engine. The bar 24 will catch the valve stem if it drops and the plate otherwise is identical with that of Fig. 2.

In the majority of engines known today the pistons at their top dead center position are slightly below, or in line with, the upper surface of the engine block. In a few engines, however; the pistons rise above the cylinder block. In order to adapt the protection plate of the present invention to use in such engines it has been found necessary to utilize the construction of Fig. 4. In this embodiment the ring 25 is formed in a flat plane and is insertable in the same type of groove as shown in Fig.1. The cross bars 23 however, and the wider bar 24 or 24', forming the lattice or network are curved in convex shape. When this is placed in position a piston can rise above the cylinder block without interfering with protec-' tion plate and the same protection is obtained.

Manifestly the protection plate of the present invention can be made in any and all sizes and if desired, shapes. Any and all types of heat resisting metal can be utilized. The present invention is the only one known to me which provides complete protection not only from a broken valve head but also prevents a broken valve stein from falling into a cylinder bore and injuring seriously an internal combustion engine.

Manlfestly, changes in details of construction will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains without departing from the spirit and scope thereof as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A protection plate for internal combustion engines adapted for insertion between a piston and the valves of said engine comprising a ring, a lattice work of crossed bars secured to said ring and a cross bar of greater width than the other said bars adapted for being located directly beneath the valve stem of the valves.

2. A valve protection plate as claimed in claim 1 said wider bar being centrally and diametrically disposed in said ring, said protection plate being adapted for use in L-head engines.

3. A valve protection plate as claimed in claim 1; said wider bar being disposed in proximity to one side of said ring, said protection plate being adapted for use in V-head engines.

4. A protection plate as claimed in claim 1, said ring being flat, said bars forming said lattice work being curved to form a convex cross-section of said lattice work, said protection plate being adapted for use in engines wherein a piston in top dead center position extends above a cylinder block.

5. In an internal combustion engine, a cylinder bore, a valve chamber, a cylinder block defining said bore, a cylinder head mounted on said block and defining said valve chamber, a groove formed in said cylinder head around said cylinder bore, a protection plate inserted in said groove and interposed between said cylinder bore and said valve chamber, a piston in said bore, valves in said valve chamber, said protection plate com prising a plurality of crossed bars forming a lattice work, and a wider bar in said protection plate extending directly under the axial plane of the valve stems of saidvalve's.

HERMAN F. MCKENNA.

No references cited. 

